Iran brings 13 tons of gold back home after latest round of nuclear talks

Iran has successfully repatriated this week 13 tons of gold as part of a package of sanctions relief provided by the U.S. and other five global powers, the head of the country's central bank (CBI) announced.

The bullion was transferred from South Africa, which had been holding onto the assets due to sanctions meant to pressure Tehran to rein in its nuclear program.

The head of Iran's central bank, Valiollah Seif, noted the gold had not been transferred to Tehran before "because of illogical problems created under the pretext of sanctions," Tasnim News Agency reports.

He attributed the successful repatriation to the merit of the Iranian negotiators during the ongoing Vienna meetings, adding that "sanctions relief against Iran and the country's regaining access to its financial resources and gold abroad” was one of the main goals of such talks.

Iran’s GDP has grown 3% in the last year, prompting experts to warn that harsh sanctions imposed on the nation are simply not working.

Iran and the P5+1 group — the U.S., Britain, France, Russia, China, plus Germany — agreed on a framework of understanding in April, and set June 30 as the deadline for concluding a final deal. However, the parties decided later to extend the talks until July 7.